100Reporters, May 21, 2014 –

How William Browder & friends cheated Russian tax authority and minority shareholders.

As U.S and European governments impose sanctions on bankers, businessmen and officials close to Vladimir Putin to pressure him over Crimea, the asset freezes will lead investigators not to the Kremlin alone, but to the western-built offshore system that has helped the Russian leader and friends loot their country and consolidate power.

A case – details not public before – shows how westerners – lawyers, accountants, bankers, investors”used the offshore system to facilitate and benefit from Russian corruption.

It involves William Browder (opposite), self-described anti-corruption fighter, known in Washington for winning passage of 2012 “Magnitsky Act,” which presaged current law by blocking visas, freezing assets of Russians accused of rights violations and corruption.

Browder and fellow investors stole funds diverted via an Isle of Man shell from a Russian company they controlled.